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Manila Bulletin devider Business devider Smart connects 1M teachers in landmark deal with DepEd

Smart connects 1M teachers in landmark deal with DepEd

Published Aug 22, 2021 07:00 am

Under the new normal of online schooling in the continuing pandemic, Smart Communications signed a landmark deal with the Department of Education ( DepEd) to connect one million teachers nationwide.

The data connectivity will facilitate their daily teaching tasks and empower their online classes, says Alfredo S. Panlilio, PLDT Inc. and Smart Communications President and CEO.

“This is an important opportunity to partner with our government in ensuring that no learner is left behind,” he added.

Subsidized by DepEd through the funds sourced from Bayanihan 2 which Congress approved, activated SIM cards pre-loaded with Smart Giga Study plans will be distributed to public school teachers for use in online teaching and interacting with students.

"We ensure that our personnel and teachers can provide basic education services to our learners despite the situation,” according to Education Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones.

"DepEd procured the sim cards and connectivity load from its external partner for all the teaching and non-teaching personnel to ensure ease in communication and unhampered delivery of services amid the crisis,” according to Undersecretary Alain Del B. Pascua.

The project also supports DepEd’s vision to make public schools resilient and more conducive to learning in the future.

"As the secondary parents of our children, teachers have the most important job in shaping and inspiring the leaders of the future,” noted ePLDT Group President & CEO and PLDT SVP and Head of PLDT and Smart Enterprise Business Groups Jovy I. Hernandez.

Both DepEd-provided SIM cards are linked with CuroTeknika Helpdesk that will manage the disbursement of monthly loads for recipient teachers. 

These SIMs are powered by Smart Long Term Evolution (LTE) and Smart 5G in selected areas.

On the other hand, the Giga Study data package gives users access to learning apps and productivity tools, such as Google Suite, which includes Google Classroom, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Gmail, Meet, and Drive. 

The data pack also offers access to Microsoft 365, which includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, Teams, and OneDrive.

PLDT and Smart have been a strong supporter of the country’s goals to fortify the education system towards becoming digitally-enabled and globally competitive.

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